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The Spy In Black - 1939 B&W
Review by Sea Bass Chunshaw
Movie Rating: 4/5 Stars
Shaw's Rating: 5/5 Scars
Synopsis: The captain of a German U-Boat, a Nazi spy (Conrad Veidt), lands in a mission where he meets and falls in love with a German secret agent school teacher (Valerie Hobson). The teacher is already getting it on with an ex-British naval officer with a chip on his shoulder (Sebastian Shaw!) who can provide valuable info for the Nazis.
Sebastian Shaw's role: Lt. Ashington
The Spy In Black is a pretty good Nazi thriller with a lot of murder, double-crossing, and subtle sexual references. And it has Sebastian Shaw right on the cover, which is a rarity in Shaw films.
The handsome U-Boat captain Hardt is given a mission to sail to England, disguise himself, and meet with a secret German agent babe posing as the local school teacher. It isn't long before the Captain starts putting the moves on this hot young fraulein.
But the teacher must confess: She's been giving it up for the local traitor, an ex-British naval officer who smashed his ship while drunk and got demoted. He was willing to to give up the British Navy's secrets for cash, and some action with the teacher! And the traitor is played by none other than Sebastian Shaw! Woo Woo! Hey wait a minute, Shaw plays the bad guy?!
Well, of course Sebastian and Hardt hate each other. But they both work through it all for the mutual goal of seeing Britain's fleet sunk by the U-boats.
I don't want to give away many of the exciting details in this movie. There are a number of exciting twists and turns.
But I will tell you this: Sebastian Shaw is excellent!
In many scenes, he's boozing it up. Within moments of his appearance, he's broken out a flask and taking a chug. He drinks indoors or out. He drinks alone, or with his lady friend. And he smashes the bottle over his shoulder when it's empty.
You'll also get to see Shaw wield a gun and wave it around a bit. You'll see him kick in a door. You'll see him smoke a cigarette. You'll see him intimidate the vicar. You'll see him use binoculars! And you'll see him mash face with a woman!
Sebastian is so young in this film! His eyes are mostly bag-less. He has lots of hair. He looks pretty good in his navy outfit, too. You'll get to see a full range of acting ability from Mr. Shaw in this movie. He's one of the three main characters, once the movie stars rolling.
The Shaw Factor: One of Shaw's best. And there's plenty of him! You won't be disappointed.
Character Vices: Booze, cigarettes, other.
Character Death: No
Available on VHS / DVD? The VHS copy I watched was of pretty good quality. I was only able to find this film on VHS. You can find laserdiscs in some cases, or DVDs coded for regions other than Region 1.
Conclusion: You get a lot of Shaw for your dollar in this movie. He's in plenty of scenes, and plays them well. As an added bonus, the movie is good. You'll be rooting for Shaw throughout this picture. Your mom might like it too.
The film itself is a British film, and many of the Nazis speak with amusing British accents. Some people hate old movies. But if you like movies from the 30's and 40's, you'll enjoy this flick.
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Dashing Nazis get ready to give England a pounding. If only they could get good strategic info from a British traitor!
Young-looking Sebastian Shaw was still consumed by the dark side of the Force back in these days.
"Ve vant zose plans!" "Ok."
"Drink when you can on this job, that's my motto."
A nice closeup of Shaw.
Shaw quickly offers booze to a young lady to console her guilt.
Finally a little liplock for our Hero.
"Bye, thanks for watching my movie!"